The New Generation
by screwlifeletswrite523
Summary: AU. After Salacia, the daughter of Percy and Annabeth is drawn back into the world of Greek and Romans, Monsters and Gods, she's forced to forgive her family and accept her role as the daughter of the legendary heroes. Teaming up with her best friend, Livia, and the other descendants of the remaining legendary seven, they venture out to find their missing parents.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The water encircles me. Darkness grabs me, pulling me down as blackness covers my vision. I try to scream but can't, my throat burning for oxygen, refusing to let my lungs expand. I'm falling, falling, falling, farther and farther down. God, will I hit the bottom? Is there a bottom? My vision, panic turns to numbness and I my eyes flutter close-

 _Bang Bang Bang_

My eyes fly open and I feel my bed beneath me, instead of the watery nothingness of my dream. I glance at the clock by my bed, 12:23. I put my pillow over my head ignoring the knocking at my door. She can wait.

 _Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang_

"Alright, I'm coming, I'm coming," I roll out of my blankets, untangling myself from the sheets wrapped tightly around me, and trudge over to the door of my dorm. I open it ever so slightly.

"...yes?" I ask through the crack.

"God, finally! I've been knocking for hours! Let me in!"

I open the door but block her access inside, leaning against the frame, "Hours, you say? That seems highly unlikely. Someone would have surely reported you after around thirty minutes. If you actually had a patience that lasted that long."

"Well I wouldn't have to use any patience if you knew what an alarm was, Miss Sleeps-till-Noon" She saunters into my room without invitation. "Okay, I'm enlisting you. I need help. I don't understand any academic activities that these sorry excuse for teachers drone about." She glances at my bed in its thrashed-around-state and plops down in my desk chair. "Seriously Sal, what is it with you lately?"

"Just bad dreams, Livia. They happen." I try to cover up the fact that bags are hanging under my eyes, physical proof that I haven't had a good nights sleep in probably months.

She gives me a "really?" look before tossing her Calculus textbook on my desk, grabbing _my_ pencil, and swirls _**my**_ chair around. "Don't you have your own dorm to go to? That's, you know, not mine?" Despite this, I close my door and start on rearranging the pillows and blankets. She spins around and gives me one of her dazzling smiles that could convince the toughest bachelor to swoon at the knees. She flips her dark hair over her shoulder and bats her shockingly blue sapphire eyes at me.

"I'm sorry, Sali. I thought I would come and see my best friend. I so rarely see her and I feel as her closest friend I should keep her academics in mind and have her help me." Always the most humble mindset. I throw a pillow at her before I actually finish consider helping her. "You're a mess," I mutter with a smile and a roll of my eyes.

She laughs her almost angel like laugh. Honestly, if she really needs help she could get any boy or girl to fall over themselves for her, ready to do anything. She has that power I never understood. Compared to her I'm as charming as a brick wall. She fiddles with the random items on my desk, ADHD taking effect.

"Seriously, I need help. I've supposed to have been studying this entire week, getting ready for terms tomorrow and I started about," she looks at my clock, "twenty minutes ago." I glance at the old, battered hat resting beside her kleptomaniac hands. I pick it up, tracing the fraying _NY_ stitching, then result in hanging in on my lamp.

"You know, there is this really amazing new discovery, called a Library. They have magical things called books that answer questions that intelligible people have," I yawn.

"Shut up, I went there already. Creepy Guy was there staring a hole through my head".'Creepy Guy' has been on her Livia's radar for a while, in all the worst ways. He doesn't say much, mostly just...stares...creepily. She turns to the hat hanging. "Why do you insist on keeping this old hat anyway? It's way past its time."

I sigh, sitting down on my newly made bed, glaring at the stupid ball cap. The only thing left of my real mother and father. The story goes I was found with the stupid, torn thing on my baby head after they left me on the Long Island Sound. My parents either had a terrible sense of humor or they were just crazy Yankee fans. After I was found (and after multiple escapes from foster parents who found some reason to hate me) I got sent to boarding school to boarding school, until finally, I ended up at Yankee Academy. Basically, it's a really old, boring, preppy, rich kid school. The only thing that keeps me here is Livia. She swooped in my first day, another poor kid with no family.

"I don't know. A certain attachment I guess." Looking up, I see she's bounced from my desk to my closet in a flash. She has a habit of this, moving like a shock of lightning has run down her back. Either that or she just has a lot of coffee.

"Put this on and let's go," she declares throwing me a long green sweater that she most likely put in my closet herself and a pair of black leggings. I consider against arguing for my regular T-shirt and jeans as I know she'll find some way to charm or guilt into getting her way.

"Go where?"

"I need to do something else than studying today. I've worked hard, I deserve a break."

I pull the sweater over my head, "You worked about twenty-two minutes."

"Precisely, now get up and help me. I can't concentrate here with you're brooding and Creepy Guy should be gone." And just like that, she gathers her books and saunters out the door. I pull on my sneakers and start out the door before I stop and look up. I hesitate, then grab the fading Yankee ball cap before rushing out to catch up with Livia.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

How I Got There

I'm underwater again. The waves keep pushing me under. My lungs, my throat, my head, all burning and aching. My legs kicking to escape the watery grave, but then a voice.

"Little Salacia, you have been lucky until now...but your luck will soon...fade." The voice fades as I feel myself rising up, out of the water. I'm almost floating, up up up...

"Sali! Wake up!" A shaking stirs me back from my dream.

"Wha-what?" My head snaps up. I'm panting, eyes frantic.

"I'm stuck on this problem, what do I- oh hey you alright?" Livia studies me, blue eyes searching me.

"Yeah..yeah I'm fine. Just dozed off." I think back to the dream. There was a voice! I desperately try to remember what the gravely, disembodied voice said.

"Okay, well come on. Let's focus on this work before you doze on me again." She playfully nudges my arm as we turn the page and get to work.

We'd been at the library for two hours, Livia was determined to get something academic done. I started dozing when she started reading aloud. Truth is, I already know how to do this, and Livia knows I do. I think it makes her feel better if we both pretend that we're _both_ desperately struggling instead of just her. I pull on my dirty blonde ponytail, growing bored.

The library was near closing time, and only three people remained. The librarians left an hour ago for dinner and that left just Livia and me, three other students, and Creepy Guy.

"Yeah, he hasn't moved. But the library will close soon, so he has to leave soon. Right?" Livia sounds almost desperate.

"Yeah, yeah he should. Just ignore him, where were we?" I'm starting to lose my patience, not to mention, my alertness. I'm exhausted after another restless night and a disturbed nap.

Another half hour later, and after only two successful practice problems, we give up. We were nearly alone in the library now. Just us, creepy guy, and one other student cramming before exams tomorrow.

"Alright, Liv. I think I'm done for the day. Do you wanna head back up and - what is it?" Her face has fallen, her eyes traveling across the library.

"Sal, look" she nods her head towards Creepy Guy, in the corner. His dark ashy hair hanging in his face. His tall, lean, and skinny body hunched over, looking at us. He looks around at the near-empty library and then gets up. I now realize he hadn't been working on anything, just...watching...us. He starts looming towards us. He approaches us and glooms down at us.

"Hello Livia, Salacia." What's weird is it almost sounds like clicking when he says "L" or "S".

"Hi, um, my name is actually Sali, we were just working-"

"Forgive me, but I seem to have misplaced my library card, may you help me," his voice is breathy but there's the clicking again.

"Okay, sorry, but we're gonna go now, bye." Livia grabs her book and my hand and raises from the table and starts toward the front library doors.

All of a sudden, what looks like a spider web shoots out and covers the handle.

"May I ask again, stay and help. That's what you heroes do, right?" Heroes? What does he mean by heroes? I'm just a lonely girl from upstate New York trying to get through this semester. His speak slows as he starts to...morph? What is this?

The girl studying looks up and screams, throwing her book and falls back.

"Oh my god, what is that?" Livia screams

Creepy Guy's body starts to shrink and, multiplies? This has to be special effect makeup, this has to be a prank, until...Oh no. Anything but-!

"Spiders!" The girl screams as she bolts toward the door, trying in vain to pull the web covered handle.

Dozens, what seems like hundreds of oversized, hairy, spiders swarm everywhere.

Why did they have to be spiders? The one biggest, most illogical fear I have. I panic every time I see a tiny spider on my bathroom floor, and now...how the hell are there dozens of three feet tall spiders, with their pinchers and their beady eyes and...and...

We stand frozen as they rush towards us. The other girl unfortunately stuck with us has passed out by the door but the spiders don't seem to care much about her as they continue to advance toward us. Toward us!

"Run!" Livia yells, pulling me towards the shelves. We take off not a moment too soon as I hear the _SNAP_ of pinchers attacking right where we were moments before. I grab books off the shelves, throwing them back as we run, knocking a few back farther from us, but more just scamper into their place and advance closer to us. We'll never outrun these things.

I dart behind another sturdy bookshelf. "Help me!" I yell at Livia as I start to push against the shelf. She gets the idea and pushes against the bookshelves beside me. The shelf slowly tilts over then crashes down on a swarm of the spiders, hopefully killing them, and knocking down the shelf behind it. This will take a lot of explaining and a lot of student loans to clean up later.

We rush past the mound of fallen books and broken shelves and run toward the tables, even more spiders in pursuit behind us. We take a turn down another aisle and come face to face with another falling shelf. The shelf we pushed over had caused a domino reaction and we're about to be crushed. Livia pushes me out of the aisle and I watch as the shelf falls on my best friend.

"Livia!" My adrenaline is dangerously high as I watch the spiders advance as I fall to my knees and struggle to lift the shelf off the only friend I have.

Then, without warning, the window to the back of the library crashes.

A dark, towering, broad boy a little older than me about seventeen or eighteen, with a mass of weapons on him, stands on the windowsill. On him are pistols, shotguns, you name it. But, looking closer I realize it's not just guns but...swords too. Daggers and swords, bows and arrows, all attached to his belt or around his back. Beside him stands a shorter, but still lanky boy around my age with olive skin and unruly curly hair holding what looks like to be...fire?!

I'm too in shock from the newcomers that I almost forget my impending doom in front of me. One of the spider hybrids unleashes its pinchers and jumps at me and before it can sink them into my neck, the taller, weapons obsessed boy shoots an arrow through its neck and dust falls on me instead of the creature's dead body. He grabs another arrow and runs to start clearing away the rest of them.

The weird fire wielding boy races towards me and helps me to lift the shelf off of Livia and then pulls a sword from his belt and slashes through another advancing arachnid, only leaving dust.

"Hey, we are your knights in shining armor and your ride to an extent. Don't worry, we'll explain everything on the way, if you would just follow me-" He looks at me for the first time, his mop of curly brown hair hanging in front of his deep brown eyes, searching me up and down. He smirks at me, a mischievous smile shining down at me.

"Well, hiya."

An arrow flies by, narrowly missing his left ear.

"Less flirting, more rescuing, Leo!" the weapons boy turns back around and shoots a spider straight through one of its beady eyes. "Get them on the pegasi, we're pushing our luck. The spiders aren't stopping and someones gonna hear us and come running soon."

The boy called Leo picks up Livia's unconscious body and turns back to me, "Excuse Arion, he's cranky. All the time. Come on." He holds Livia in his arms and runs back to the windowsill where standing there in the courtyard behind him stands two beautiful horses, one silver one black, and throws her over the silver horse, her legs hanging by the horses - wings?!

"Do you think 'pegasi' is the actual plural for pegasus? I always thought it would be 'pegasuses' or just 'pegasus' again like a group of sheep," Leo wonders, while securing Livia and heading over towards me, helping me over the shards sticking out of the broken windowsill.

"Gods, just get the girls on the damn flying horses!" Arion yells as he bolts toward us, spiders on his heels.

This can't be happening. An hour ago I was worried about midterms and now I'm running for my life from overgrown spiders on flying horses with a handsome boy who holds fire. I have to be sleeping again.

I'm such in shock still, I hardly feel Leo lift me onto the black pegasus behind him. "Alrighty gorgeous, this is your ride. Hold on tight." I smell a whiff of pine as I wrap my arms around his stomach, swinging my legs over the horse, being careful of the creature's wings.

The pegasus takes off instantly. I've never ridden a horse before, only seen ones on TV. But riding the pegasus felt...right. I can't very well explain the feeling of riding the flying horse. It was the most bizarre but incredible feeling ever. Wind in my hair and on my face. It was better than any roller coaster. Our pegasus seems to be nervous, repeatedly looking back almost as looking for my approval. He speeds up and flies around in an almost loop-de-loop, turning his head slightly looking at my laugh of delight as I grip tighter to Leo.

I glance behind us and see Arion and Livia on the silver horse. Livia is still unconscious and Arion has one arm around her and the other around his pegasus' neck.

I lean my head toward Leo's ear, "Where are we going?"

"Oh you'll love it!" he yells back over the wind, "We're on course to the legendary Camp Half-Blood!"


	3. Chapter 3

When I Got There

Camp "Half-Blood"? Surely I heard him wrong over the wind whipping around us. Half Blood? Half human, I presume and half - what? Leo looks back at my astonished face flashes his mischievous smirk, curly hair flying around his face.

"You'll see," he smirks.

I lean back, trying to comprehend what has happened in just the past twelve hours. I squeeze my eyes tight, telling myself when I opened them, I'll wake up from a now completely different nightmare, but no. When I open my eyes, I'm still on the back of a flying horse, holding onto a weird, magical boy on the way to some weird camp after being attacked by giant hairy spiders.

The pegasi (pegasuses? pegasus'? oh whatever) travel fast. Within an hour, our rides begin slowing down and start their slow descent.

From up above, Camp "Half-Blood?" does look like a camp, but a really messed up, Amazon-warrior looking camp. Below me lies a rock wall with what looks like real lava flowing down the side. On the other side of the land, everything is covered with green. Green fields of something growing and a massive forest that takes up a quarter of the land. What I assume are the cabins are arranged in a horseshoe shape and even from above I can hear the sounds of whoops and shouts and metal clanging against metal.

How could anyone miss this place?

As we near the camp I notice immediately that a strange crowd has surrounded below us. Half man, half goat creatures stare at us from the fields where a pleasant strawberry smell is lingering. Young women almost materialize from the trees. Kids of all ages covered in odd coverings of armor gaze up at us as our pegasi (I've decided this as the most correct) softly touch down on the sandy beach.

"Hi! We're hooommme!" Leo jumps down and sticks the landing with a heroic pose in the sand. I'm still in shock. My brain refuses to believe what I'm seeing around me but my eyes refuse to look away.

It takes me a minute before I realize that everyone in the small crowd gathered is staring at me - or rather above me.

"...what-what is going on?" I demand.

Leo looks up at me, "Oh, they're waiting for a magical symbol to materialize above your head." Leo states matter-of-factly.

Arion's steed touches down beside me. I dash off my ride and rush over to Livia, laying on the silver back of the pegasus. "Livia! Is she alright?" I grab her arm, feeling her wrist for a pulse.

Arion jumps down and touches my arm. "She'll be fine. I promise. You're safe here."

"Safe?" I laugh. "I don't even know where here is! What attacked us? What is this place?" I push Arion away.

Leo rushes over, stepping in between us, raising his hands as if I was in any position of being able to harm him in any way.

"Hey, it's okay. I told you we're at Camp Half-Blood. It's a camp for - for kids like us. It keeps us safe."

"Safe? Safe from what? The spider thing-ys?" I have to be going crazy.

"Trust me, gorgeous, spider thing-ys and much, much worse. We're here to help you. I know you have questions," His deep, comforting chestnut eyes bore into mine. "We'll try to answer anything we can."

Before I can start my explosion of questions, however, screams break out.

The small crowd gathered around us acts at once. Arion draws a sword from his collection on his belt and starts barking orders at soon as he could draw the breath. Leo runs toward me, picking up Livia on the back of the horse and even the pegasus immediately flies up and bolts down the beach.

"What's going on!?" I yell at no one in particular.

"Another attack. We'll have to rain check on the tour. Follow me and you'll be less likely to die!" Leo sprints down path opposite the makeshift army advancing toward the screams.

My legs act on their own accord. I take off beside Leo, running past volleyball courts and odd looking cabins. We run past forest lines and the dining hall. Around us, the strangest defense I'd ever seen run past us. Some are decked in full armor, others barely have time to pull a helmet before they run to defense, grabbing swords, bows, whatever they could find.

Leo leads me to a giant, blue, three-story house with a wrap around porch. He sets Livia, whose beginning to groan and twitch, in a rocking chair.

"Stay with her and stay here, okay? I'll be back in a jiffy. If I'm alive." He winks at me and holds his hands open. At first, I think he's trying to offer me a hug, but then his hands themselves come ablaze. Well, I'm glad I didn't hug him.

He takes off down the porch, in the direction the other campers and hurrying to. I jump on the railing and I can vaguely see ahead a pine tree on a tall hill and - something huge. What looks like a collection of huge lions with wings (what is it with animals with wings here?) attacking ruthlessly.

"Wh-what? Where are we?"

Livia! "Hey, Liv, how ya feeling?" I rush over and kneel by the rocking chair beside her.

"Like hell, head hurts. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I don't quite know where we are but you're never gonna believe-"

My sentence is drowned out by a roar so loud it shook the windows of the giant blue house.

"What was that?!" Livia is fully alert now.

"I wish I could explain everything, but I don't understand any of this."

Another roar shakes the porch and as it recedes, I hear a female voice.

 _Go inside_

"Did you say something, Liv?" I glance around, no one was around us. Everyone seemed to be down in the fight.

"No. Sal-what is going on?"

 _Trust me, go inside to the left._

Am I crazy? Am I simply hearing voices and imaging flying horses? I must be losing it after too many all-nighters.

 _Inside, girl!_

I jump. Whoever is talking is starting to get pissed. "Wait here, Liv." I run to the front door and throw it open.

"Like hell, I will," Livia mutters after me, jumping up and dashing after me.

I walk into an entrance hallway. To the left lies what looks like a living area. On the wall, just above the fireplace, though, stands out a beautiful, gleaming, golden sword. The blade is long and double sided and just above the hilt in perfect etched letters reads _Anaklusmos_. It stands proudly behind a sheet of glass.

 _Take it_

Take it? I've never touched a gun, let alone a sword. I take a step closer. It feels almost like it's pulling me closer to it. Below the glass is a short, hand-written note in nice, neat handwriting. ' _In honor of Percy Jackson, thank you'._

"Sali, what are you doing" Livia is standing in the open doorway.

 _Grab the sword and run towards the fight, you're family depends on you_

I don't know how I explain what I do next. I still refuse to believe it was my own free will that led me to do what I do next.

I take the glass case from the mantle and throw it on the ground and grab the hilt of the sword on the floor and for some reason, it feels right. Just like riding the pegasus, just like something about this place feels like a long-last homecoming. Like I belong. I grab Anaklusmos and rush past Livia out the door and out of the house. I race down the stairs, the sword in my hand.

What am I doing? I don't know how to use a sword! I'm probably running straight toward my death. I slow down.

 _What are you doing? Go! I will direct you, child. Listen to me._

My strange burst of confidence rushes back and I charge on, right towards the roars of the golden, poisonous manticores atop the hill.

 _Don't rush in head first, put on the hat._

I stop in my tracts. The hat? The hat! I grab the old Yankee cap that I grabbed on the way out of my door which feels like ages ago now and put it on my head.

And I wait.

And wait.

...I don't feel heroic yet.

But then, I look down - and I can't see my feet!

I throw the hat off of my head and push down a scream. I'd put that hat on before and I doubt that had ever happened? Did I really just never notice that handy little magic trick in that torn hat I loathed?

 _Put it on, and attack from behind. The tail is filled with poison and you could die the minute it touches you_

I almost ask the voice if I really have to, before it yells at me again

 _GO!_

I throw the hat back on and, as quietly as I can, run up the hill.

As soon as I reach the top I immediately want to run back down. The mysterious voice was right. In front of me, charging into as many campers as it can, stands a giant lion-like creature I had only read about in my Greek Mythology book or Harry Potter. It had the face and body of a great lion on steroids, giant wings that knocked down the first few lines of the campers defense when the creature flapped them, and at the back, a skinny, long tail that looked like it belonged on the bottom side of a scorpion. It had pinchers that were always flowing with an acidic green looking poison.

I see Leo shooting fireball and fireball, but to no avail, this things skin seems to be as tough as armor. Arion has used over a quarter of his weapon arrangement around him and is down to what seems to be his last arrow.

First _rule of combat - Look for a weakness. Where's his weakness, Salacia?_

I frantically look around and notice a small cut the size of maybe a bookmark, but already gushing a strange golden substance, on the creature's back paw.

 _Good. Approach carefully. Its senses are diverted because of the other campers. It shouldn't notice. You have one shot. After that, its tail will sink into your back and you will die. Sneak behind, below, and attack. Brains before brawn. Always. Remember that. Good luck._

And just like that, the voice is gone. The only guidance I had and suddenly, I know I have a minimum of twenty seconds before my surge of confidence is gone and I'm running for the hill. Literally.

Making sure the hat with the magical invisibility is secure, I grasp the sword tighter until my knuckles are white, if I could see them. I slowly circle the beast, still staying about twenty feet away. It still hasn't sensed me. I duck when a fireball flies over me and steer clear of the other swords and arrows shooting throughout the field. I creep closer, approaching its backside now, taking care of the fatal tail and try my hardest to avoid getting stepped on.

I sink to the ground, slowly crawling towards the manticore's hind legs until I get so close I can make out each individual hair on its back. I take a deep breath, squeeze the hilt then raise the sword and let instincts take over as the blade comes swinging down onto its paw.

An ear deafening roar pierces the air as I roll as far as I can away from the beast. Too bad I forgot lions had claws.

As I roll away from the beast, its front claw catches my arm and slashes my left arm from the shoulder to my elbow. I let out a scream as the lion itself falls down, off- balance from the abuse to its back paw.

I struggle to pick myself back up, using my good right arm to push myself up and find my sword lying a foot away from the monster. I must have dropped it in my roll of escape.

I stagger over, grabbing the sword hilt from the ground and plunge it into the lion's exposed underbelly, where no armored skin covered.

The beast roared its last roar as it quickly evaporated into dust, leaving behind a single talon from its claw.

I barely have the strength to turn towards the rest of the little army gathered. Leo stares, mouth agape, fire still blazing from his fingers. Arion studies me intently, bow lowered. My hat lays on the ground beside my feet and every eye is staring straight at me - or rather above me.

I look up and vaguely register a gleaming, green trident with a beautiful shimmering owl flying around it before I collapse and everything goes black.


	4. Family History

Family History

I awake to arguing first, but only briefly.

I hear three hushed voices speaking, almost hissing, but they sound distant.

"The attacks are increasing, we have to act." This voice sounds old, but wise and authoritative.

"Well, between "Supreme Camp Roman" throwing a hissy fit, and mysterious evil being wanting us dead, I'd say we should probably act yesterday." Leo, it has to be. I can almost hear the smile in his speech.

"We can't rush in. We need to train more. We'd be slaughtered if we went in now." This one is gruff, demanding, had to be Arion.

There's a long pause and I start drifting off again before I hear the conversation turn towards me.

"I can see how she could be a child of Athena and that would explain the owl," the older voices calmly states. "We can get her situated into Cabin 6 when she wakes up"

"Gods! Then how do you explain the trident and the hat!" Leo's voice begins to rise. "Stop ignoring what's right in front of you, Chiron. There's a chance, a minuscule chance, but still a chance."

"Of what?" Chiron sounds dangerously quiet.

"Another child of the Seven," Adrion finishes. They sound like they've had this conversation before.

"We could get answers, they might know" continues Leo, "Can you imagine that power, the kids of the greatest heroes alive?!"

"Well, we don't know if they are alive, do we?" After this, they fall silent.

Then I slip back into my fitful unconscious state. I dream of lions on fire, of water rising above me dragging me down, of hundreds of eyes all trained on me, staring at a gleaming trident. A burning, scorching pain runs through my arm and then, nothing.

The next time I gain consciousness, to my surprise, Livia is sitting beside my bed.

"Hey Miss Sleeps-Til-Noon," she smiles, "How ya feeling?" Her dark brown hair is pulled back into a braid, stray strands of hair falling over her caramel skin, blue eyes shining at me.

I'm in what looks like a makeshift hospital room, in a bed with a single white sheet over me and a small, neat room. On one wall is a window overlooking the camp, on the other wall a poster of a satyr with a thermometer in its mouth and the words ' _Get Better Soon_ ' underneath. I open my mouth to reply and discover on trying to talk that my mouth and throat feel about as dry as sandpaper.

"Here," Livia holds up a drink up to me, "Drink."

I take a cautious sip, and the taste shocks me. Warm, just baked, peanut butter cookies. It rolls down my throat and immediately warms me from the inside-out, easing the remaining pain that was previously shooting up and down my arm.

"What is that stuff?" I croak

"Nectar." she grins

"wh, what?" I gasp

"Ah, you're awake." A wise voice speaks from the front of the room. I look up and then back down at an older man with a tweed jacket and a short scruffy beard with kind eyes sitting in a wheelchair, a blanket over his lap.

"Hello dear, my name is Chiron, I'm a teacher of sorts here. That was quite a stunt you pulled at the hill, but I believe a thank you is in order." He wheels himself in and settles himself beside my bed across from Livia.

Something about the voice is familiar, but I can't quite place my finger on it. "Um, you're welcome, I think."

Livia offers me another sip, but I decline, feeling as if too much of that stuff would do more harm than good.

"I know you must have questions, and I am here to answer whatever you need, but forgive me, I'm afraid I have a few questions of my own," Chiron begins. "Perhaps we can take turns. Shall we begin?"

"Alright," I start, "What were those things? At the top of the hill."

"Two days ago, a Manticore attacked the camp, sent either by Camp Jupiter or by an anonymous presence who wishes harm on the children here. Your brave, if not foolish, actions did stop this attack however and saved the camp, for the time being."

Two days ago - I'd been out that long? Well, so long Midterms.

"Camp Jupiter? There's another camp?"

Chiron stops me, calmly holding up his hand, "Ah, I believe it was my turn dear," He smiles a kind, patient smile. "How old are you?"

Well, that's easy enough, "Sixteen," I respond. I ponder for a second, "Why am I here?"

"You are here because Camp Half-Blood is a safe place that offers protection and proper training for Demi-Gods, like you and Miss Livia."

I stare at him shocked and then whip my head toward Livia. She shrugs apologetically. "They explained everything to me while you were out."

"My turn," Chiron smiles, "We've gathered where you got the sword, but where did you find that hat?"

"It's mine," I snap. "I was told the police found it on me when they discovered me, abandoned on the Long Island Shore."

Chiron studies me, "Hmm" is his only reply.

My turn. "What's a demi-god?" I demand.

"A child between a mortal and a Greek god. Yes, Greek Civilization and culture is still alive and thriving here in America. I would explain more, but after the last few days you've had, I suspect it comes at less of a shock than most campers."

I process this. It would make sense...kinda. I'd read about Greek gods and Greek mythology. I just always viewed them as just stores, so then - which god would be my parent? What were the trident and owl for? The more answers I get, the more questions I have.

Chiron clears his throat, and smiles again "Last question, where did you learn to fight a Manticore?"

I suddenly don't want to answer him anymore. I know the response will sound even crazier than explaining how Greek gods exist. "I, um, heard it?"

"Excuse me?"

"I, well, um, there was a voice. In - well in my head. I can't explain it any more than that. A woman, I think. Told me where to go, what to do, and where to hit. I know. It sounds crazy."

"I believe you, Miss Sali," Chiron says quickly.

"Oh, okay then."

Chiron smiles and pats my hand reassuringly. "Any last questions?"

Oh, I had dozens more. Did I have to stay here the rest of my life? Will I ever have to fight more things like the manticore? Who were my parents? But then, I think back to the sword I stole from the Big House living room, and of the note written so carefully at the bottom. And I realize I only have one question burning through my mind.

"Who's Percy Jackson?"

"Ah, well -" Chiron chuckles and looks out the window on the left wall, gazing sadly. Whoever he was, it obviously upset Chiron still. Was he the one who put up the memoir?

"He was a camper here, a great one. He trained and grew and saved not only two camps, including this one, but also the world as we know it, multiple times."

"Oh. He sounds...important. What happened to him?" Chiron either doesn't notice my double question, or doesn't care because he continues.

"We don't know for sure anything. We just have assumptions, and I tend not to dwell on assumptions for long."

"All terrible assumptions, of course!" Comes a chipper voice from outside my room.

"Forgive Leonardo, he also hasn't been at the camp long. His father was assumed dead for the past eighteen years, but then he showed up on our beach a month ago." He winks at me as he begins to wheel himself toward the door, "Another reason not to believe assumptions, rest Sali, and perhaps you can join our Capture the Flag game tomorrow night!"

Leo opens the door for him and he wheels out of the room with a final wave. Leo glances at me and shoots a wink and a grin and closes the door behind him.

"Well. That was fun!" pipes Livia.

"Livia, do you believe anything they said?"

"I didn't at first, Sal, believe me, but look around you! How else would you explain this?"

I look out the window, at the crazy rock wall and the colorful strange cabins. In some deep part of me, it all clicked. It made sense...it was - home. That was the best word. Just like the pegasus, just like the sword, it felt like home.

My stomach interrupts the silence with a grumble so loud, it sounds like the Manticore's roar has come back.

Livia laughs out loud, "Come on, dinner should have started. You have to check this out."

The mess hall was enormous and so it seemed, had no room for me.

Long tables stretched between the columns, there was no roof above (which itself is a major architect mistake, I mean, what if it rains?) and a giant hearth in a corner, where kids were already lining up in front of it.

"For the time being, we sit here." Livia links her arm through mine and leads me to the very corner of the mess hall, where a blanket had been spread out with four plates and four glasses had been set up on the ground. "This is ours." she sighs.

"What? Are you kidding me? There's plenty of room on the dozens of tables around us. I mean right here, half the table is open!" I gesture towards the table closest to us, where a group of burly kids sit around the table, whooping and pushing each other across the tables.

The oldest one, a girl a little older than me notices me and snarls. Whoa, what's her problem?

"Um, sorry didn't mean to intrude." I chuckle nervously.

"Oh, what's the matter, little hero? Something not to your liking?" the girl hisses and chortles at me.

"Okay, who do you-"

All of a sudden, I feel an arm link through my waist and pull me back. "Hey, there you are, you little bookworm! I see you met Lissa." Leo grins down at me as 'Lissa' glares at me and pulls out her dagger and starts sharpening the blade against the table. Leo chuckles nervously and pulls me back toward our little pathetic picnic in the corner. "It was great being threatened by you, Lissa! We hopefully won't see ya later."

He turns me around and plops me down on the blanket.

"Okay. Number One, you're bookworm now. I recused you in a library, I saw an owl over your head, and I'm making an assumption. Number Two, you don't know how it works here, alright? I suggest a break from crazy, running into action, heroic, deeds, okay?"

"Who was that? Why can't we sit there?" I can't believe anyone could be that much of a bully.

Adrion sits down across from me, handing Livia and me plates of food, "Because every table here is for a certain god's or goddess' children. That table you just...interacted with is the table for the children of Ares. We sit here because we don't have a singular godly parent."

I stare around at the other tables and now that Arion mentions it, all the children at the tables share a certain - resemblance. The all blonde hair and gray eyes at the table across from us. The shouts of laughter and occasional _booms_ from the sandy-haired filled table at the end of the hall.

"You mean, every kid here is a child of a god?" I ask

"And a mortal," Livia answers. I gape at her. "What?" she defends "You're the one who's been out two days."

"Okay, so who are you parents?" I ask Leo and Arion.

The mood shifts as soon as the sentence comes out of my mouth.

"Well," says Arion, "My mother was a daughter of Pluto and my father was a son of Mars."

"Pluto and Mars? Aren't those Roman names?" I ask

"After Camp Jupiter accused Camp Half-Blood of kidnapping three of the seven, I came here."

"Oh," I say, pretending that made perfect sense. I pick up a roll and bit into it.

"My mother is Calypso and my father is a son of Hephaestus. 'The Seven' were a group of totally awesome heroes who saved the world." Leo states through a mouthful of beef tenderloin.

"Well, where are they now?" I ask hopefully. Maybe they could lead me to my parents, whoever they were.

Adrion and Leo share a look. "Well," Adrion begins, "we don't know. Three of them disappeared from here fourteen years ago, the other three disappeared from the other camp around the same time and Leo-"

"My father disappeared from our own home a year ago and eight months later, my mother was cursed back to her island, trapped forever." Leo's voice sounds chipper as if he just told a joke, but behind that, I hear an almost sadness, but as I look at his forced smile I see an emotion I know all too well. I look at his deep brown eyes and I see pain.

He catches my eye and as quickly as he drops the mask, he puts it back on and shoots me a wink. "You gonna eat that extra roll, bookworm?"


	5. Training to Be a Hero

Chapter 5

Training to Be a Hero

Not only do we eat at the corner of the mess hall every single meal, (always by the Ares table whose favorite hobby was throwing bits of food and seeing if it would stick in my ponytail), but we also had to stay in guest rooms inside the Big House. Apparently, since three of us had godly grandparents that would take offense if we chose one cabin over another, and since Livia hadn't been claimed at all yet, we had to stick with our "temporary arrangements".

Not being in any particular cabin also meant different schedules entirely. Which meant training, eating, fighting, even rooming next to Leo and Arion almost 24/7.

Along with strawberry picking, stable cleaning, and multiple near-death experiences on the rock wall, daily training was required at Camp Half-Blood. Every morning at 7:00 am sharp, Livia would wake me up and drag me to the training arena (which sucked because I still never sleep well) and we would meet Arion and Leo and promptly get our butts kicked.

"Your entire left side is exposed, in a real battle with your guard down like that, you're dead." Arion barks at me and sends me flying across the training mat with a blow to my side.

"They are going to demolish you during Capture the Flag," Adrion crosses over to me and helps me to my feet. "Keep your sword up and your mind sharp."

The slow action wasn't entirely my fault. Every sword we had found for me was either too heavy or too light, this particular incident, it was way too heavy. Every time I swung at Adrion, it felt like I'm swinging a heavy, wooden club. Every other sword I held felt like it was going to fly out of my hand.

Chiron gave me back my hat, but Anakulusmos (or Riptide, as I've learned, is the translation) was taken back. I've asked about it to Leo, but every time I bring it up he shares a look with Arion and shakes his head at me. Once I could have sworn I saw Arion mouth back "Not yet".

I brush my blonde hair out of my face and look over at Livia and Leo on the other mat. She doesn't seem to be having much luck either. I watch as Leo throws a blow to her shoulder and also sends her flying off the mat.

"Don't be so tense, Livia," Arion yells across, "Be firm, yet flexible"

"Oh yes, firm yet flexible, perfect sense!" She screams back.

Leo rushes over and helps her to her feet, "Alright how about we take a break from swords and take another stab at archery?" He laughs at his own joke and crosses the training arena to archery targets.

"Why can't we just go to the actual archery targets over by the volleyball courts?" I ask

"Oh, um, the Apollo kids are hogging it, always, so we'll train here. In our training center. Our nice, convenient, quiet training center." Leo giggles nervously and sets up a bow and arrow and gesturing me to come over. Livia grimaces and turns to me.

"Last time I held a bow, I nearly took out my eye. I'd rather risk losing an arm with Arion than trying that again. Have fun!" she mutters to me and rushes over to Arion, grabbing her sword from the ground on the way.

"Hiya," he says, handing me the bow. "Last time we actually got a little closer to the actual target. I have a good feeling about today." he winks.

"Shut up," I mutter. I line up the bow, aiming at the bullseye. I take a deep breath, try to steady my hand, and shoot.

The arrow shoots two feet over the target.

"O-Okay" Leo holds back a laugh. "Try aiming a little lower, gorgeous."

"I did try. I've been trying for the past week!"

"Okay, calm down there bookworm," He grabs another arrow and hands it to me.

"Please, there's no point." I grimace, throwing the arrow back.

"Here," he strings the arrow with the bow. He pushes my shoulder down and holds my left hand up.

"Now, keep your arms steady. Relax. Think of the bow, or any weapon, as an extension of your own arm." I then register Leo's arms are technically wrapped around me. The scent of pine wafts through my nose again and I become slightly dizzy. I take a deep breath, relax a bit into Leo's arms and shoot.

The arrow is two inches from the bullseye.

"Hey! See, ya did it!" Leo beams down at me, as he is near a foot taller than me.

"I mean, barely. I was aiming for the bullseye," I laugh.

"Well yeah," he agrees. "But it didn't hit _my_ eye so that's some improvement." He grins down at me and lets go of my arms to go retrieve the arrow from the target.

I exhale as the smell of pine still lingers in my nose. I watch as he bends down to pick up the arrow that flew over the target and a few strands of curly dark hair fall over his eyes. His gaze then catches mine.

"See something you like, bookworm?" he smirks

His comment snaps me back to reality as I scowl and roll my eyes. How could he go from almost attractive to unbelievably annoying in the blink of an eye?

He snickers at my annoyance but keeps his eyes locked on mine as he rises and draws near. He stops in front of me and just before the situation can become even more awkward, he simply states -

"Your eyes are really green"

"Ah, yeah I guess?" And just like that, I can't tear myself away from his deep caramel eyes and his lopsided, mischievous smile.

"Come on, love-birds," Arion yells "get back to training if you want any hope in Capture the Flag tonight!"

"What's so important and dire about a stupid camp game?" I hiss as I tear myself from Leo, feeling a blush coming to my face.

"Oh no." Leo seems to lack the ability to feel embarrassment. "Capture the Flag is not just a game! It is a battle, nay, a test of strength, bravery, determination, and -"

"And we've never won it." Arion butts in.

"No, we have never come close to winning," Leo agrees.

In the distance, we hear the horn for dinner blowing, alerting the entire camp that it was time to move to the mess hall.


End file.
